I am reading The Short Bus by Jonathan Mooney. When I first picked this book, I really only picked it because I am studying to be a special education teacher. Going into reading this book I assumed that I knew a lot about people with disabilities because I have been exposed to it all my life and I almost have a full semester of my special education class under my belt. However, I was in for a very big surprise when I started to really get into this book. Personally what has shocked me the most is the way that the teachers treat their students. It saddens me so much to see how these kids are told that they need to be "normal". These people should become special education teachers because they want to help students with disabilities. These teachers are in fact doing the opposite. They are very negative towards their students and because of this their students believe that they are not normal and that they can't ever be normal. In the very beginning of the story when Mooney was a guest speaker in a general education classroom, the teacher announces him as "He used to be just like you and now he is normal". I think that is a horrible message to send to people with special needs. The goal of a special education teacher is to help the students realize their potential so they can eventually become as independently functioning as they can be into their adult life. These teachers are actually cruel enough to call their children "stupid" and because of this their students believe they truly are stupid. One child actually tried to commit suicide in the sixth grade because of how much he dreaded his reading class. This is not the right environment for a person to be in and that is why I think that Mooney spreading the word that this is happening is a great thing. This opened my eyes to a whole other side to special education and now it motivates me more to do what is right for these children and to take care of them in the ways they need to be.
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